MELBOURNE – Learner Tien is a 20-year-old unlike most: he has earned over three million dollars and is already a Grand Slam quarterfinalist — all before moving out of his parents’ house.
“I still live at home. I think sometime this year I’ll probably get my own place, but my parents remain very involved in my life, and I’m very grateful for that,” said Tien, ranked No. 29 in the ATP rankings.
Despite being one of the most successful players of his generation, Tien still leads a normal life in Irvine, a small city in California where his Vietnamese parents settled after arriving in the United States.
“My family has always been a very important part of my life, and it’s hard to imagine life without them,” he told reporters in Melbourne after defeating Russian Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round of the 2026 Australian Open.
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The American began to shine on the tour exactly a year ago, when he reached the fourth round of the season’s first Grand Slam. He defeated the Russian in the second round in a dramatic match that was decided in a fifth-set tiebreak.
“I want to be great. I want to achieve big things in this sport. I don’t want to put a limit on what I want. There’s nothing that, if I accomplish it in my career, would make me feel like I’m done or that my career is a failure. I don’t see it that way,” he told CLAY in an interview last season.
After Melbourne, he delivered more impressive results for a teenager: a quarterfinal at the Toronto Masters 1000, a final at the ATP 500 in Beijing, and titles at the ATP 250 in Metz and the Next Gen Finals.
For a spot in the semifinals, he will face Alexander Zverev, world No. 3 and last year’s finalist.
“I feel like I’ve been playing a little better match by match, and in each match I take a small step in how well I play and how comfortable I feel. Right now I feel better than I have all week, even all year, so I’m really looking forward to that match,” said the player coached by Michael Chang.
If he defeats the German, he will break into the ATP Top 20 and leave Australia with at least $1.25 million more in prize money — enough to find a place on the California real estate market.
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